Across the United States, health systems face a physician shortage, exacerbated by both an aging patient population and an aging physician workforce. On top of these stressors, lingering workforce challenges remain from the COVID-19 pandemic.
The physician shortage impacts the Veterans Health Administration (VHA), too. In addition to the aforementioned stressors, VHA also contends with salary limitations, strict regulatory processes, and other constraints. As a result, VHA is always working to “hire faster and more competitively” with the ultimate goal of improving access to care for the Veterans it serves.
To further investigate VHA physician hiring, the Partnered Evidence-based Policy Resource Center (PEPReC) evaluated the relationship between physician base salary and the amount of time required to fill open positions. PEPReC evaluators found that base salary matters when it comes to hiring quickly. Detailed results can be found in a new PEPReC policy brief here.
PEPReC, within the Veterans Health Administration and funded in large part by the Quality Enhancement Research Initiative (QUERI), is a team of health economists, health services and public health researchers, statistical programmers, and policy analysts who engage policymakers to improve Veterans’ lives through evidence-driven innovations using advanced quantitative methods.
